rominl

iTrader: (4)

well, being tirerack recommended installer doesn't mean they are "good". i think there are still different grades of shop. i am not saying that the one you run into is bad though, i actually think it's a good starting pont. just be persistent and nice, i am sure you will get the issue resolved

STONER

I haven't picked the car up but on the phone with the tech I was told that there was still a vibration. They are blaming it on the tread pattern of the tire. It sounds like crap to me. They're ContiExtreme All Season tires. How aggressive can they be?

RMMGS4

iTrader: (5)

Don't get thrown off track with this tread pattern discussion.

Ask them for the print out of the numbers from the Hunter.

If it is above 24, then Tirerack "should" honor replacing them.

If it is below or =24, and you still have vibration, then and ONLY then can we talk about their tread pattern theory.

Whatever the outcome, I suggest you forward their comments back to Tirerack as I'm sure they will be interested in hearing how their tire installer is identifying problems with the tire design.

Tirerack has a rating scale for their recommended installers.

For sure, just because these guys are on the list doesn't guarantee that they are 100% great.

I wonder what it takes to have a shop removed from that list ???

luciano

Just got the bushings installed.. I still have the 55MPH vibration but not as bad.. but also the car feels much stiffer which is not a bad thing but I can feel every bump in the road, Is this normal? I thought it wasn't suppost to compromise too much of the road feel... I didn't get alignment done yet though but I don't think that can help the road feel..

STONER

That's an interesting observation. I think you are the first to report that the bushings did not cure all our vibrating woes. You may have saved me some additional grief in the future (thinking that the bushings was a last resort but sure fix). If you don't mind me asking, what kind of tires are you running. I am going to return the ContiExtremes and get the Pirelli P-Zero Nero M&S. The folks at TireRack continue to be awesome and I think they are going to let me return all 6 tires now and put the original price towards the new ones. Now I just need to find an installer.

luciano

Im running 245/35/19 Falken ST-115 in the front, good tires with no inside wear.
I'll let you know tomorow how the car feels after I get a 4 wheel alignment and a Hunter wheel balance for the front.

Reason I changed the bushings was because they were totaly shot and wouldn't pass safety inspection. I got a fairly good deal of $400CDN for labour to replace them so im not complaining.

luciano

Alright, I got wheel alignment done and everything is solid now, I still got a tiny vibration around 60MPH but I found out one of my front wheels is slightly bent so that might be the problem.

STONER

Well the Pirelli don't come in the sizes I need so I'm not going to go that route. I still think I can fix this without replacing the tires.

Could I benefit from getting hubcentric rings for the IS350 wheels I'm running?

Would they even work?

I'm thinking something must be happening after the wheels come off the balancer and are driven on for a few miles.

I absolutely need to figure this out, it's driving me crazy.

chuckb

hey Andy-your wheels should be hubcentric already. I'm pulling this from pretty deep, but I' think I've heard about people with the continentals not being able to get them to balance before.

what are the road force #'s on each wheel? did you ask them to watch the tires on the balancer to make sure they are not out of round?

maybe you should try some toyo t1r or michelins.

btw-does the car shake bad at all high speeds or only in a certain range?

STONER

I would bet that they are hubcentric and I too have read about issues with the Continentals. TireRack doesn't carry Toyo so that's out but I can look into the Michelins. I need to call tomorrow and get the numbers from the Hunter machine. In all the times that I've been to this place I have only gotten I actual print out of the results. As far as the shaking, it starts at about 55 and goes through 65 and is noticeably worse when I'm standing on the gas. Also when I'm just cruising at around 65 I'll get an intermittant vibration. Like it will shake for a two seconds and then be smooth and then shake again but at a steady frequency, not random increments. Get what I'm saying?

SloGS3

Well, i just got my Daizen bushings installed on friday, and i absolutely HATE them!! Biggest waste of money so far, the car still has the vibration problem, and its worse now then it was before, not to mention i can feel every little bump in the road, whereas before it was nice and smooth. I also got the Tein CS installed at the same time and im very very dissapointed with the whole set up, the car rode way better on springs and the bushings didnt do anything but make the ride worse. I say dont bother getting the Daizen bushings, they will not do anything for you but cost you a lot of money. Just my .02!

luciano

I had the same feeling as you after I got them installed, Did you get alignment done? it helped alot.

SloGS3

Yes i got my alignment done on saturday, by tires are perfectly balanced and none of my wheels are bent, im very dissapointed in all of this!

chuckb

i'll bet your 20s are the root of your problem. do you have hub rings? what are your road force #s?

luciano

Yeah, must be dissappointing considering new control arm setup is the same price as these bushings installed.., how much did you pay labour to get them installed?